Entries from August 2013

Friday, August 30. 2013

The library will be closed this weekend so our staff can enjoy the Labor Day weekend.

Friday, August 30

8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Saturday, August 31 - Monday, September 2

CLOSED

Tuesday, September 3

8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Our regular Fall Semester hours resume on Wednesday, September 4.

For library hours and Library Research Center hours, please check the library’s website. Check the ITS website for Computer Lab hours.

Remember, even when the library is closed, you can:
• Search Summon™ and research databases for journal, magazine, and newspaper articles, and much more;
• Search the library catalog and use e-books;
• Renew books, DVDs, etc. through My Library Account.

Thursday, August 29. 2013

RefWorks is an online bibliography and database manager that allows you to create personal citation databases. Just import references from text files or research databases (RefWorks works with most of the library's databases). RefWorks helps you to write papers or manuscripts by automatically formatting the paper and the bibliography in APA or MLA format, for example. With just a click, you can change to another of more than 3,300 styles. (Requires a free personal account.)

Wednesday, August 28. 2013

Over the summer, I've been reading the Aubrey–Maturin books by Patrick O'Brien. It is a series of nautical novels that deal with what was going on on the other side of the ocean during the Napoleonic Wars. This will keep me busy for a while -- there are 20 novels! The 2003 movie Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World was based on the tenth book (I haven't gotten that far, yet).

On August 28, 1938, Edgar Bergon's ventriloquist's dummy Charlie McCarthy, received an honorary degree from Northwestern University. [Edgar Bergon and Charlie McCarthy were wildly popular from the 1930s through the 1950s and beyond.] The dummy was awarded the degree of Master of Innuendo and the Snappy Comeback by the Dean of the School of Speech during the Bergon-McCarthy radio broadcast. To see the article about McCarthy's "degree," search for "M'Carthy to Get Northwestern 'Degree' Today" in ProQuest Historical Newspapers: Chicago Tribune (1849-1989). The Chicago Tribune has thousands more articles that mention ventriloquists and ventriloquism. So, find out about more dummies and their ventriloquists!

Are you taking the GMAT, GRE, LSAT, or MCAT exam? Practice exams for these and others can be found in LearningExpress Library™. LearningExpress Library™ also includes Job & Career Accelerator™, which can help you write resumés and cover letters, find jobs and internship opportunities, explore Occupational Profiles, and look up salary and job growth information.

Friday, August 23. 2013

On August 23, 1788, The Pennsylvania Mercury and Universal Advertiser, a Philadelphia newspaper, printed an advertisement from Thomas Dobson, publisher of the American edition of An Introduction to Natural Philosophy by William Nicholson. See the advertisement for this book in the Archive of Americana database. The Mardigian Library doesn't have this book, but Ann Arbor has the 1st through 5th edtions -- and, the 2nd through 5th editions are available online through HathiTrust.

Wednesday, August 21. 2013

On August 21, 1863, 164 civilians were killed in Lawrence, Kansas in what is known as Quantrill's Raid. The library has a number of books related to the conflict on the Kansas-Missouri border during the Civil War, of which Quantrill's Raid was a part. Included is Juliet's Moon, a fictional account about the women who were affected by the events.

Mr. and Mrs. Baldwin Allen of Xenia, returned Thursday [August 21] from Detroit, to remain another week. They are visiting Mr. and Mrs. Arthur T. Abbott... Miss Anna Nelson of Cincinnati, is also their guest. She is here attending the U. B. F. and Eastern Star state meets...

Do you know what the U. B. F. and Eastern Star state meets are (or were)? Please share!

Tuesday, August 20. 2013

The list of new books and other materials added to the library’s collection in July has been posted. Click on “…more New Arrivals” on the library’s home page. Or, go directly to http://library.umd.umich.edu/newbooks/.

On August 20, 1863, Charles Dickens wrote a letter to John Forster. In this letter, Dickens said, "It strikes me as the funniest piece of weakness I ever saw..." What was the funniest piece of weakness Dickens ever saw? Find out in The Letters of Charles Dickens: 1820-1870. (2nd Release) Electronic edition. Letters by Dickens as well as many other famous people that wrote about philosophy, political thought, religious studies, sociology, the history of science, economics, and the classics can be found in the Past Masters database.

Monday, August 19. 2013

Questions about the new look for CQ Researcher (from the CQ Researcher website):

What has changed?
The new look for CQ Researcher simplifies the display of the content as well as the functionality of the site. The features include:
• Clean user-focused interface to show only relevant content
• Better spotlight of the "Featured Report" on the home page
• Improved display of search results
• Updated Browse Topics list
• New social media sharing options on each report page

Does the redesign include any new features?
Yes, we are now publishing new shorter reports on Hot Topics. Hot Topics are up-to-date, reports on 20 of the most popular research subjects. Each Hot Topics report includes an introduction, an overview of an issue, a chronology, and a list of related full CQ Researcher reports published in the past. New hot topics reports will be published every year.

Is training available on using the new interface?
Yes, we have two new tutorial videos as part of the re-designed website: a quick intro video and a more comprehensive overview video.